1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to foldable crates suitable for holding and transporting objects.
2. Background Art
Folding crates are generally known in the art. Typical folding crate arrangements connect each side wall to a bottom surface via a hinge arrangement. When not in use, opposing side walls can be folded down onto the bottom surface to significantly reduce the space requirement of the crate.
Depending on the overall size of the crate, it is common for two side walls to have a height greater than half the width of the bottom surface so that only one of the side walls will lie flat on the bottom surface, while the opposing side wall will overlap and lie on top thereof. This causes the overlying side wall to be in a final nonparallel folded position relative to the bottom surface, i.e., an angle of incidence greater than zero. Thus, the overall height or “nest increment” of the folded crate is significantly increased by the angled, overlapping side wall when in the folded position.
One known approach for allowing the folded walls to lie parallel to the bottom surface, and thereby reduce the height of a folded crate, involves positioning the hinges of opposing side walls at different heights. However, such asymmetrical arrangements require the side walls to be folded in a specific sequence, which in turn increases complexity and convenience in handling the crate. In addition, the asymmetrical hinge layout can present additional issues associated with tooling or molding of the crate. Another known approach involves forming the overlapping side walls with faces that align and intermesh when folded. Again, such an approach can increase the complexity in handling the crate, and may not even be practical for crates having side walls that overlap by a significant amount.
Therefore, a need exists for a folding crate having a reduced nest increment which does not require a specific side wall folding sequence, and can be employed with crates having side walls that substantially overlap.